Period poverty, or the inability to pay menstrual products, is a particularly important issue in developing countries, an issue that girls and menstruating women deal with monthly and a topic on Fate on the Day Lent, observed annually on May 28.
“I’m happy to come here because I meet and work with other people,” said Ms. Fatty, who operates a special machine to put snaps on each pad. “This place gives me happiness because I can forget about my disability while working here.”
Strong, durable pads that help women like you with mobility impairments, who have trouble going to the bathroom. After working there for a year, Ms. Fatty hopes to continue. While his disabilities brought many challenges and he struggled to make ends meet for a long time, his life has improved since joining the service.
Keeping girls in school
In The Gambia, Africa’s smallest country, chronic poverty is prevalent throughout the country, but it hits hardest in rural areas, according to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). Some girls skip school for up to five days every month due to a lack of menstrual products and hygiene items.
The girls fear soiling their clothes and becoming the target of bullying or abuse, the agency said. As a result, gender inequality is widening; Boys will benefit as they go to school more often than girls, who have a higher chance of dropping out of education.
To address this problem, UNFPA developed a project in Basse, in the Upper River Region of the country, to make reusable sanitary pads. These pads are distributed in schools and hospitals in the surrounding areas.
The agency takes it as an opportunity to talk about physical freedom and sexual and reproductive health with adolescent girls to reduce the time of shame and stigma.
Force the youth of women
The project is also a way to empower young women in the community as it gives them a secure job and the opportunity to learn new skills.
SDG Goal 6: Clean water and sanitation
Since 2014, Menstruation Day has been held on the twenty-eighth day of the fifth month of the year as menstrual periods average twenty-eight days in length and people menstruate on average five days a month.
Poor menstrual health and hygiene underlie basic rights – including the right to work and go to school – for women, girls and menstruating people, according to UNFPA.
It also worsens social and economic inequalities, the agency said. In addition, inadequate tools to control menstruation, as well as exclusionary and shameful practices, undermine human dignity. Gender inequality, extreme poverty, humanitarian crises and harmful cultures can exacerbate deprivation and stigma.
With that in mind, the theme for this year’s Menstruation Day is “Making menstruation a normal fact of life by 2030,” said UNFPA Executive Director Natalia Kanem.
He said: “A girl’s first period should be a happy fact of life, a sign of coming of age with dignity. “You should have access to everything necessary to understand and take care of yourself and go to school without stigma or shame.”
The day brings together governments, non-profits, the private sector, and individuals to promote good menstrual health and hygiene for all people around the world. The conference also aims at breaking the silence, raising awareness around menstrual issues and making resolutions to take actions for good menstrual health and hygiene.
Learn more about what UNFPA is doing to eliminate chronic poverty here.
Elimination of time poverty
UNFPA has four broad approaches to promoting and improving menstrual health around the world:
- Supplies and safe bathrooms: In 2017, 484,000 hygiene kits, consisting of pads, soap and underwear, were distributed in 18 countries affected by humanitarian emergencies. UNFPA is also helping to improve security in transit camps, distributing flashlights and installing solar lights in bathing areas. Promoting menstrual health information and building skills, projects include teaching girls to make reusable menstrual pads or raising awareness about menstrual cups.
- Advancing education and information: Through its youth programs and sexuality education efforts, UNFPA helps boys and girls understand that menstruation is healthy and normal.
- Supporting national health systems: Efforts include promoting menstrual health and providing care to girls and women with menstrual disorders. The agency also purchases reproductive health products that may be useful for treating menstrual-related disorders.
- Gathering data and evidence about menstrual health and its connection to global development: a long-overlooked topic of research, UNFPA-supported studies provide important insight into girls’ and women’s knowledge about their periods, health, and access to sanitary facilities.
